Wednesday, August 05, 2015

Retrocooking in The Telegraph. The uncertain future of several British berries like:

Bilberry pie goes back a long way - the Brontë sisters are thought to have eaten it at Haworth Parsonage as there is an old Haworth recipe for the traditional pudding - and they were also an important crop in Britain, with the leaves used to treat stomach problems.
But now, other than for a few intrepid bilberry hunters, they are virtually nowhere to be seen. Though you can get bottled Polish bilberries in syrup and a powdered version can be used as a vitamin supplement. (Eleanor Steafel)

Bustle talks about the gender bias in publishing, still very much alive today:

Unfortunately, it doesn't, and [Catherine] Nichols' experience in the industry isn't unique. Women have been writing as men for ages. Middlemarch author George Eliot was Mary Ann Evans in real life, and the Brontë sisters adopted male pseudonyms to publish Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. Although Little Women premiered under her own name, Louisa May Alcott wrote as A.M. Barnard to support her family. (Kristian Wilson)

​I have wanted to be on Jeopardy since I was about five years old. This is entirely the fault of my dad, who has been watching it since before I can remember even understanding the concept of television. (He auditioned once in the '90s but didn't pass the test, probably because he doesn't read enough books. You have to know your Brontës if you want to be on Jeopardy, Dad.)

Female First publishes a top 5 Jamie Bell movies. Like Jane Eyre 2011 in which he was St John Rivers:

Jane Eyre may be a story that we have seen told many times on the big screen over the years, and yet, Fukunaga has brought a fresh and new feel to his interpretation.Jane Eyre looks and feels thoroughly modern. Sweeping cinematography and a script that feels far younger than its 19th century home, make Jane Eyre an entirely refreshing place to be. Director Cary Fukunaga must take credit for such a subtle but fantastic job.Jane Eyre is a movie that is beautifully crafted by the director and boasts some terrific performances - the chemistry between Wasikowska and Fassbender really does drive this movie forward. (Helen Earnshaw)

I was silenced. Bakkhai was written in 405BC. Surely, after 2,500 years there can be no such thing as a spoiler? If so, do we have to pretend, every time we discuss them, that it’s possible that Richard III found a horse, Hamlet lived on in England, Jane Eyre married St John Rivers and Anna Karenina took the train to St Petersburg? Perhaps we do.

Cooped up in an office all week, what better way could there be to blast the cobwebs into oblivion than striding over the dales like Heathcliff? Studies show that walking in the fresh air encourages problem-solving, reduces stress, lowers your chances of stroke or heart attack, and tackles depression. So get your boots on. (Flic Everett)